Tuesday 24 April 2012 05.55 EDT
First published on Tuesday 24 April 2012 05.55 EDT

The Beach Boys are putting the finishing touches to their first original album in more than two decades. Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine and Bruce Johnston have reunited for the as yet untitled record, due on 5 June.

"[It] reminds me of our [1970] Sunflower album, which is probably one of our least-selling albums, [but] some of the songs there are stunning," Johnston told Billboard. "It's not a quilt or a pot-luck dinner; it's not like, 'OK, everybody show up with your songs.' It's not one of those kind of albums … It's all brand new."

All of the current Beach Boys wrote songs for the LP, including collaborations by the reconciled Wilson and Love. They have also brought in guitarist David Marks, who began playing with the band in 1962 – when he was just 13 years old. Even the late Carl Wilson is involved: a song called Waves of Love uses vocals by the youngest Wilson brother, recorded before his death in 1998.

"This album has elements of everything," Johnston said. "And we don't have EMI, Capitol, acting like they did when I joined the band: 'We gotta have hits! We gotta have hits! Come on, is that a hit?!' Just coming to the sessions and torturing you. It wasn't like that this time. They've listened to the stuff and go, 'Wow, that's pretty nice.'"

The band will issue their first new material as a "zinepak" on 1 May, a week after they begin their reunion tour. That song is a new rendition of Do It Again, first released in 1968. The lead single, That's Why God Made the Radio, will follow a little later. Apart from reissues such as Smile, Wilson and Love haven't worked together since 1989's Still Cruisin'.

Despite their years of ups and downs, Johnston claims the band are getting on well. "Nobody was enemies," he said. "Everyone had fake judo fights over the years, but no one got hurt." Still, it seems unlikely that the Boys will continue to tour together after their 50th anniversary run is complete. "[Brian] would hate it. I happen to love it. So does Mike … [But] I think it's going to be one special tour and that's it." The Beach Boys will play only three European dates, in Germany and Belgium in August.